Relationship of Physique and Developmental Level to Physical Performance

Abstract

A study was made of the relationship of physique and developmental level, determined by use of the Wetzel Grid, to performance of junior high boys on four fitness tests: pull-ups, 50-yd. dash, standing broad jump, and softball throw. Subjects of different physique groups (heavy, medium, and thin) who were alike developmentally (accelerated, normal, and retarded) differed more markedly in performance than did subjects of different developmental levels who were alike with regard to physique. Subjects who were medium in physique and normal in development were the best performers. Subjects of heavy physique (many overweight) were the poorest performers. This would seem to indicate the need for a restudy of classification methods, particularly when norms are to be used for evaluating performance.     

Strategic ambiguity in the role development process

Today's turbulent business and social environment often compels organizations to adopt internal programs that will help them cope with complexity. One organizational sector in which this is particularly true is the health care industry, as managed care programs and competitive forces have changed the way hospitals and clinics operate. This study looks at a specific organizational program designed to cope with these industry changes and considers the impact of the program on the nurses involved. Drawing on theory and research on role development and strategic ambiguity, this case analysis looks at a hospital system in which the nursing role of “care coordinator”; was defined in a strategically ambiguous way. After analyzing interviews with 19 care coordinators, conclusions are drawn regarding affective reactions to strategic role ambiguity, behavioral adaptation to strategic role ambiguity, and the importance of conceptualizing role ambiguity as a systemic process.     

Deliberative Democracy, Diversity and the Challenges of Citizenship Education

For democracies to thrive, citizens have to be taught to be democrats. How do people learn to be democrats in circumstances of diversity and plurality? We address this question via a discussion of three models of deliberative democracy: public reason (as exemplified by Rawls), discursive democracy (as exemplified by Benhabib) and communicative democracy (as exemplified by Young). Each of the three theorists contributes to an account of how to educate citizens by teaching talk. Against a commonly held assumption that the protection of diversity in a pluralist democracy requires a thin conception of citizenship education, we defend a thick conception that simultaneously fosters autonomy and participation without sacrificing tolerance of diversity.     

Single Mothers’ Experiences of Support at Their Young Children’s School: An Interpretative Phenomenological Approach

This phenomenological study explored six single mothers’ experiences of support at their young children’s school. Themes resulting from interpretative phenomenological analysis suggest the single mothers experienced tangible (e.g., school resources, school-wide events, structural flexibility, teachers’ formal communication) and intangible (e.g., caring relationships with school faculty and staff, experiencing teachers as parenting partners, perceiving acceptance from the school environment) forms of support from their children’s school. Furthermore, results suggest these single mothers experienced intangible supports more prominently than tangible forms of support. The support needs of these single mothers at their young children’s school were also explored including the mothers’ desire for stronger relationships with other parents and families at the school.